All about guppy fish

Guppies are probably one of the most popular species for fish lovers as they are cheap and come in many different variants, even though some special variants might be more expensive. Guppies are also suitable for beginners. They are best described as being:

• peaceful
• elegant
• hardy
• lively
• curious
• playful 

Male and female guppies

The males are very easily distinguishable from the females just by looking at their body sizes, colours and tails. 

Male guppy is very colourful and has large tail, with slimmer and smaller body size. The anal fin is long, thin and pointed. 

Male guppy.
Adapted from http://www.petshop-zoomania.com/Guppy/Fantail%20Guppy%20%20male%203.jpg.

Female guppy is dull grey/silver in colour, with bulkier and rounder body size. The anal fin is also flag-shaped/triangular in shape. In a pregnant female guppy, there will be a dark gravid spot on its belly, just above the anal fin. As it gets closer to giving birth, the gravid spot will grow bigger and darker.

Female guppy.
Adapted from http://board.fishchannel.com/Uploads/Images/76b92168-88ed-4e53-b58a-f6c7.JPG.

Care for guppies

There are several parameters that need to be taken care of for maintaining guppies in an aquarium. It is best to set up the tank to mimic their natural environment, which is the fresh and brackish water found in Amazon River. 

• Water treatment: Similar to zebrafish, guppies can be maintained in tap water that has been treated with water conditioner to remove the harmful chemicals from the water. The water should be treated as per instructions on the water conditioner's manual.

• pH: The pH of water should be around pH 6.8 to 7.8. Typically, the pH of tap water is around pH 7. However, the pH in a tank normally fluctuates due to the accumulation of ammonia or lack of oxygen in the water. Filters and air pumps could be used to help clean and purify the water as well as to provide aeration to the water. The filters should be cleaned once a week or at least every other week by washing the sponges.

• Water hardness: Generally, the water hardness and pH are not critical as long as they do not fluctuate too much. The water hardness of tap water is normally around 20 to 400 ppm. Ppm stands for parts per million, it is a way to describe the concentration of something in water or soil.

• Temperature:  Ideally, the water temperature should be around 24 degree Celsius to 28 degree Celsius. In colder countries, a thermostat might be needed to maintain the temperature.

• Water changes: The most optimum condition would be to change at least 10% of the water daily as it helps to reduce accumulation of ammonia. Water changes are important to remove uneaten food and waste materials from fish. Alternatively, the water could be changed once or twice a week by removing 50% of the water.  

• Lighting: Setting up lighting on top of the tank is optional. The light could help to further emphasize the colourful features of the guppies. Other than that, it could also be used as a light cycle for feeding and breeding purposes. The lights should be kept on for about 10 to 14 hours per day. It should be on one hour before initial feeding and off one hour past feeding. 

Happy guppy-ing!

Cheers,

Cutie Xing

All about zebrafish

I will start off my first post with none other than my most favourite fish – zebrafish! It is probably one of the most hardy and easiest species to maintain and breed. So, I would definitely recommend zebrafish for beginners. Furthermore, they swim quite actively and fast in the tank so you won’t get bored watching them.

How zebrafish looks like

Originally found in slow streams and rice fields, zebrafish can be recognized easily from other fish species through the patterning of its body – five uniform and horizontal dark blue stripes on the sides of its body. Here are the photos of adult male and female zebrafish:

Male zebrafish

An adult male zebrafish is more yellowish in colour, with slimmer and longer body size.

Female zebrafish

An adult female zebrafish has more rounded body and a small genital papilla in front of the anal fin.

Basic maintenance for zebrafish

Maintaining zebrafish in tropical countries is relatively easy as a thermostat is not required, all that are needed would be tap water which has been conditioned by letting it set and biological filters. Alternatively, water conditioner such as Tension Gon can also be used for both fresh and salt water. Tension Gon acts by removing chlorine and chloramine, neutralizing ammonia and heavy metal as well as inhibiting nitrite accumulation in fish. In addition, it also has vitamin B as anti-stress and helps to replace lost as well as damaged protective slime coat. All we have to do is follow the guidelines given on the bottle to see how much volume of water conditioner is needed for certain volume of water. An aquarium thermostat can also be used to maintain the water temperature at around 28^oC.

Breeding 

Now, the most important thing for the fish to breed well is to ensure that they are always happy! How to do this? These are some tips that might be useful for maximal zebrafish eggs production:

• Ensure that the water is changed frequently to provide a clean and healthy environment for the fish.
• Feed the fish regularly (3 to 4 times daily) with intervals of fish pellets, live bloodworms/dried bloodworms, live brine shrimps/dried brine shrimps. I personally prefer a mixture of fish pellets with dried brine shrimps and dried bloodworms as they can be easily bought from the pet shop. Live bloodworms and brine shrimps require more tedious maintenance. 
• Males and females fish should be allowed to mix together so that it promotes regular breeding behaviours.
• If their eggs need to be collected, it is best to separate the male from the female fish and place them into a breeding tank for overnight. Use fine netting big enough for the eggs to pass through while avoiding the fish from eating their own eggs.
• Cover the breeding tank with a cloth and start the breeding at early morning with good lighting on the next day. The cloth should be removed gently and slowly to avoid startling the fish.
• Let them breed for an hour before putting them back into their community tank.
• Feed them well after breeding to help them recover, especially the female fish as it needs more nutrients and energy to produce more eggs for the next round of breeding.

With these methods, you might be able to get up to 700 eggs from just a pair of zebrafish!

Next post will be on zebrafish eggs collection and care for the larvae~

Cheers,

Cutie Xing